We are all individuals…

Japanese TV provides a rather endless source for wonder, amusement and shaking of heads, and that even though I am watching so little of it. I usually only switch it on for the news, during the Olympics or Soccer Worldcup or for the one and a half shows that I might like. Nevertheless, the little that I watch still makes me wonder.

There is (at least I think so) the very interesting phenomenon of about twenty people or more, preferably women, who say something in a choir at the same time, mostly in commercials.

So you got this silly commercial about whatever – a peppermint bonbon, insurance, detergent, you name it, and there is this whole group of women (all of them young and pretty, of course) speaking with one voice. The psychology behind that is probably to tell the consumer that the thing/service is safe. When 20 women say so, it must be, right?

Now, whenever I watch a commercial like that, I can't help but feeling awfully reminded of the ingenious Monty Python movie "Life of Brian" where a thousand people shout the phrase "we are all individuals" in a choir at Brian at the same time.

I am too much of an individual it seems to buy that crap and feel rather freaked out by the choir women – I mean, can't they at least sing?

Ah, better not… the "we are all individuals" phenomenon has found its way into Japanese popular music in form of the wildly popular AKB48 – (which consists currently of 59 girls according to Wikipedia, not 48). The group holds the Guinness Book entry for the largest pop group. They seem to be around since 2005, though I got aware of them only a few months ago.

AKB48 fans won't like my comment, but to me the girls look all the same, they are all young, cute and pretty.

Whole truckloads of books have been written about the "where does the Japanese desire for uniformity come from" issue, and I will not dare to venture into this territory. It's just that sometimes the phenomenon jumps at me in form of the "we are all individuals" commercials on Japanese TV. But then I am thinking of my Japanese friends and colleagues and find that they are all quite individual and quirky and the haunted feeling of being surrounded by clones eases again.